$100M Newport Seaside fraudster used armed thugs to grab resorts: courtroom docs

The Orange County financier arrested Wednesday for allegedly conning a financial institution out of just about $100 million is accused of utilizing a sequence of strong-arm ways throughout his marketing campaign of terror — together with deploying armed henchmen to grab resorts and a restaurant in a complicated Southern California enclave.

Indian-born businessman Mahender Makhijani, 44, was pulled out of his tony Newport Seaside mansion Wednesday morning by gun-toting federal brokers who took him into custody for allegedly defrauding an area financial institution out of almost $100 million in a posh real-estate scheme.

Final month an arbitrator discovered the Makhijani — who’s alleged to have a style for intercourse and drug events —chargeable for a greater than $1.3 billion in damages over his actual property dealings with Laguna Seaside businessman Mohammad Honarkar.

Court docket paperwork in each instances allege that he ruthlessly used threats, intimidation and even violence to achieve an higher hand on enterprise rivals, together with Honarkar.  

The felony criticism towards Makhijani says he employed a cellular billboard in 2023 to humiliate a enterprise affiliate, recognized as Honarkar, whereas the civil case towards him particulars how he used the identical tactic towards native politicians.

Honarkar detailed the threats Makhijani allegedly made towards him in courtroom paperwork.

“He’s going to destroy my repute in Laguna. He’s going to ensure my youngsters and my grandkids are on the road. He’s going to make my life depressing,” mentioned the affiliate, recognized as Honarkar. “That’s what he mentioned.”

Round this time, “cellular billboards depicting [Honarkar] and others’ faces have been pushed round Laguna Seaside, suggesting that [Honarkar] and others have been engaged in corruption,” the paperwork state.

Because the battle between Makhijani and Honarkar escalated, “a gaggle of armed people engaged on behalf” of Makhijani “entered and took management” of quite a few properties operated by Honarkar, “together with the Resort Laguna, a Vacation Inn Resort in Laguna Seaside, and a number of other different trip leases,” the criticism says.

The battle on the Resort Laguna and one other resort referred to as 14 West led to each each being briefly closed for enterprise by the Laguna metropolis supervisor.

Makhijani additionally allegedly used armed thugs to grab “bodily management” of a restaurant operated by Honarkar referred to as Terra late one evening in June 2023, in keeping with courtroom paperwork.

---

Obtain The California Publish App, observe us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters

The paperwork acknowledged that Makhijani allegedly had his henchmen break into workplaces operated by Honarkar and take monetary paperwork from employees.

“A glass door positioned on the facet of the constructing was shattered with a hammer to achieve entry,” the criticism mentioned.

Honarkar in Might gained a judgment of $1.34 billion towards Makhijani after an arbitrator discovered Makhijani “fraudulently induced” him in enterprise dealings.

The quantity awarded Honarkar included $652 million in punitive damages, $326 million in compensatory damages, and an extra $350 million awarded on behalf of the three way partnership as soon as operated by the pair, which is presently in receivership.

Legal professional Aaron Might of Halpern Might Ybarra Gelberg, who represented Honarkar within the case, mentioned the arbitrator discovered that Makhijani breached agreements and defrauded Honarkar.

“The arbitrator, after sitting by means of weeks of proof and testimony, discovered that Mr. Makhijani’s habits was willful and malicious and deserving of extraordinary punitive damages,” mentioned Might.